Hats off: Librarian shows women how to make fascinator head toppers
VACAVILLE — There were no hat tricks but plenty of hat tips as 15 women gathered in a meeting room at the Town Square library as library associate Delilah Wilson shared her fascination with fascinator hats.
Leading a workshop on the class has been a longtime desire.
“I love hats,” she said. “I love fascinators.”
Wilson even donned one she had made.
She took the women on a brief history lesson about the hat style believed to have roots in the Renaissance era. The formal headwear is often worn as an alternative to a hat. It usually features a large, decorative design attached to a band or clip. Feathers, beads and flowers are popular.
The hats are a favorite of Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, as well as many Kentucky Derby guests.
“They’ve changed over the years,” Wilson said. “They are so elaborate today.”
Wilson is the proud owner of about 30 hats. The advantages of a fascinator include they are less bulky and they don’t mess up the hair, she said.
The three basic steps to creating a fascinator are sew, glue and choose.
Wilson showed the women how to take sinamay fabric and twist it into a figure eight shape that they would attach to a metal headband and decorate.
“You made the sign of the cross,” one woman joked to another after seeing her hat shape.
Some of the women got up to look in a nearby restroom mirror before starting the final steps of sewing and attaching feather decor.
Sylvia Cross was the only participant to wear a hat to class. She also brought a fascinator hat she picked up at a vintage store.
Her interest was piqued at the 2011 wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton. Princess Beatrice of York donned one that ended up with its own Facebook page. It was auctioned and raised more than $130,000 for charitable causes.
Some fascinators are worn tipped to the side of one’s head.
“There’s an art to it,” Cross said, adding she was thankful to get a free class in fascinator hat-making. “It’s helpful to get the basics.”
Rosalie Foster was drafted by library employees to attend the workshop, she said.
“I had never heard of them,” she said.
That didn’t stop her from creating one to match her mermaid (teal and purple) hair streaks.
“My hair dictated the color of my hat,” she said.
When asked if she planned on wearing the fascinator, Foster quickly quipped, “Look at my hair. Do you think a hat like this is going to stop me?”
Once Judy Smith mastered the figure-eight shape, her fascinator took shape, including two large red feathers.
“I need a flower. I need a big, hunky flower,” she said, pointing to a spot on the hat.
Wearing it is probably not an option, she said.
“I’ll put it up somewhere and hope my cat won’t get it and chew it up,” she said.
Wilson provided a backdrop for all the participants to take photos wearing their completed works.
“I’d love to have a picture,” she said.
“We’ll send you one, maybe in a week,” one woman joked as she was finishing up her fascinator.
Wilson doesn’t have another fascinator class scheduled yet but advises those interested to visit www.solanolibrary.com and check the branch calendars.
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